"In China, there are many food styles that are very different," says Andrew Bao, who runs in Sydney. His restaurant zooms in on Hunan cuisine, which zaps your tastebuds with its lively contrasts: it's spicy, tangy, fermented and smoky.
"Hunan food is different from other cuisines, even in neighbouring provinces," he says. Hold up a map and you'll see why: there are "big mountains" that naturally form monumental borders and obstructions between this region of southern China and . And Hunan's name translates as south of , so there are large waterways that spill across its north. "Transportation isn't very easy," he says. "Hunan, geographically, is isolated."
So this landlocked area developed its own cuisine, largely uninfluenced by its neighbours. Shiso, for instance, that's more associated with Japan. "It's rarely used in China. But in Hunan, we use it a lot," he says. "We don't know the reason, it's a mystery."
And Hunan's chilli-rich food, Bao believes, comes from its weather. "It's very humid, even in summer. I think that's why we need the spice, the chilli, to drive away the humidity." Sweating from chilli-powered dishes might very well be an effective culinary solution to balmy days.
"The Hunan climate is very extreme. It's very hot in summer and very cold in winter," Bao adds. "There are plenty of vegetables in the summer season, but in winter, there are no fresh vegetables." So locals found a way to salt, dry and ferment their summer haul to keep everyone fed when temperatures dropped and nothing was growing. Lengthening the lifespan of these ingredients also amped up their flavour and you'll taste such reminders on The Chairman's menu.
"We have pickled snake beans, stir-fried with pork mince," he says. "We use a lot of pickles…we use some dried chillies to stir-fry with smoked pork. The smoked pork is a way to preserve the meat. In China, there's not much meat to eat at normal times." It was something that was only savoured at special events – which is why Bao looked forward to festivals as a kid. At Lunar New Year, people would raise a pig just for this significant event. "We found smoking it gave it more flavours and we could store it for a couple of months in the winter time…for the holidays, for the long time to come."
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Many of his favourite childhood dishes were smoked: pork, fish, duck – all dried and given a smouldering aftertaste. Another Hunan specialty he loved? , famously salted and left to develop an intense, jelly-like yolk over a long time – the name might suggest a preservation commitment that lasts decades, but they're usually stored for weeks or months.
Tangy pickled vegetables – like radishes, cucumbers and celery – were also a familiar part of his meals.
"It's very traditional in Hunan cuisine to have vegetables as a starter – [with] many flavours, many chillies," he says.
A plate of braised pork means a lot to Hunan people.
That flavour-intense firepower was a big part of the first restaurant Bao opened here in 2008 with his wife, Dingjun Li: , in Sydney's east. Its menu sizzled from the heat of all the wok-tossed chillies – from the cauliflower stir-fried with cumin to the eggplant dish with its firecracker-like scorch of green chilli. It wasn't all about detonating tastebuds, though, there was a cooling radish salad as well as the rich, caramelly and wobbly pork that was its star item. "A plate of braised pork means a lot to Hunan people," Bao says. "Actually, the braised pork is the Chairman's favourite." The restaurateur is referring to , the communist leader behind the venue's title. "We used the name Chairman Mao, because Chairman Mao is from Hunan province," he says. As for that pork dish, Li would braise the meat for hours in the wok, with just a few additions – sugar, salt, soy sauce. "She learnt from her mother [and] her mother's mother," he says.
Li is not a traditional chef, but Chairman Mao attracted many top hospitality figures for its Hunan cuisine: , and were among the restaurant's highest-profile fans.
Bao and Li didn't set out to represent their region, either – the space was actually a Sichuan hot pot eatery when they took over. "Some friends came and said, 'do some Hunan food for us, we don't want hot pot'," he recalls. And Chairman Mao continued to serve dishes from their birthplace for around 13 years. The restaurant finally closed in 2021, as the building was due to be demolished.
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In late October, Bao and Li finally opened the new incarnation of their beloved Hunanese institution – now known as The Chairman. Ditching the reference to Mao Zedong is deliberate. "I think it's better not to use his name anymore," he says of the polarising figure, whose tragic policies led to . "[Originally] we used his name – not because I like or don't like Chairman Mao, it's because Chairman Mao is from the Hunan province." To continue associating their business with his name didn't feel right and seemed "too political".
Since becoming restaurateurs in 2008, the couple have created their own distinct version of Hunan, realised through dishes that vividly evoke the region – think soy-splashed Hunan fried rice, or house-pickled radish, cabbage and other vegetables that add zing and tang to free-range chicken at The Chairman or the Hunan-style tiger prawns stir-fried with chilli for the current menu.
There are also new offerings that aren't so strictly Hunanese either – the crunchy okra dish is not a traditional specialty, Li actually developed it after working out how to char and smoke the slimy vegetable from expert wok-tossing. The shiso and chilli are signature flavours from the region, though.
I want to cry because it's food that grandmother prepared when I was young.
While The Chairman might currently omit some old Kensington favourites, you might find them at sister restaurant in Botany (like the stir-fried cauliflower with cumin) or on an upcoming version of the menu. As newcomers to the CBD dining scene, Bao and Li are still figuring out what guests want and are open to their (pro-cauliflower) opinions.
What hasn't changed is how people react to the portal they've created to Hunan. Some customers tell Bao: "I want to cry because it's food that grandmother prepared when I was young. It's the same flavours."
So The Chairman may have a new location and menu, but it's still inspiring memories like the ones that connect Bao to his birthplace.
Shop 1, 18 College Street, Darlinghurst, 02 9697 9189
Wed–Thurs: Sun 12pm–3pm, 5pm–9pm
Fri–Sat: 12pm–3pm, 5pm–10 pm
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